


i'll light your fire

by cathedralhearts



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-03
Updated: 2013-04-03
Packaged: 2017-12-07 08:47:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/746585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cathedralhearts/pseuds/cathedralhearts
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Brendan and Anna become best friends/partners in crime, Alex is less than pleased. (Or: it's always nice to make nice with the in-laws.)</p><p>(From <a href="http://daisysusan.livejournal.com/243396.html?thread=1182148">this prompt</a> on the hipster ships ficathon)</p>
            </blockquote>





	i'll light your fire

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ChibiRHM](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChibiRHM/gifts).



> Many thanks to [Savanna](http://archiveofourown.org/users/savannamae17) and Veronica for the Habs betas, and [vlieger](http://archiveofourown.org/users/vlieger) for her additional assistance. 
> 
> I've followed their season to date, but it goes a little bit AU towards the end to accommodate playoffs. I've also moved a couple of minor moments around to fit in with the progression of the story. Also, if you haven't seen Savanna's amazing primer, [get on it](http://savannamae17.livejournal.com/2018.html). 
> 
> Russian translations at the end thanks to Google Translate.

The first time Anna meets Brendan, she punches Alex as soon as Brendan’s distracted talking with their mother about poutine. Apparently she’s become an expert during the short time they’ve been living in Canada.

“Ow! What the fuck was that for?” Alex growls, and she just looks pissed.

“You do know that boy is ridiculously into you, right?” she hisses, and Alex feels his jaw drop. He’s kind of — well, he’s kind of _assumed_ for a couple of weeks now that Brendan was being the ridiculously happy, smiley little Canadian around Alex a little _harder_ than with the rest of the guys, but having his sister notice? That just confirms it.

“I thought, maybe...” he trails off, and rubs the back of his head. He feels at a loss for what to do.

He really likes Brendan, like a _lot_ , but he’s only known the guy since training camp and Brendan is _older_ than him. Alex isn’t really sure what to do with an older woman, let alone a _guy_ who’s a teammate of his.

“You thought maybe _what_ , asshole? That boy is too sweet for you.” Anna says, and Alex glares. They’ve just been out to dinner, and Brendan had his sister and mother wrapped around his little finger with his perfect Canadian manners and little... littleness the entire meal. It’s infuriating but it makes Alex’s stomach twist into knots, makes him feel like he’s breaking out into a sweat all over, nervous and happy and excited all at once. He’s still a teenager and he recognises what those feelings are when they comes about. They’re ones to be nervous of.

“Hey, fuck you! I’m amazing, and he’s lucky I haven’t beat him up for being all weird around me.”

Anna’s fury is like nothing Alex can remember in recent memory when she bails him up against the wall, her fist firmly planted in his solar plexus. Brendan’s still preoccupied, good naturedly arguing with their mother over who’s paying for the bill.

“Don’t you _ever_ say anything like that ever again, you hear me?! That boy is — you —”

It seems as though she’s so mad she’s at a loss for words, almost vibrating with anger. Alex can’t understand why she’s so worked up about this, and his stomach is really starting to hurt. She’s smaller but she’s older, and Alex has learned to fear her when she gets mad. It’s probably the most valuable lesson in his life so far.

“What are you two fighting over?” their mother calls from behind, and Alex looks over Anna’s shoulder to see Brendan staring at them, worry on his face.

“Nothing, Mama!” Anna calls, pasting on a smile and removing her fist from Alex’s midsection.

“I’m serious, dickhead. You need to be good to that boy. He’s gone through enough shit to get here. You were the number 3 draft pick — he was 147 and spent years to get a place in the line up!”

Alex knows all of this; he _has_ eyes and ears. Brendan’s never been resentful about how he ended up at the Habs, nor how he’s a rookie even though he’s two whole years older than Alex. It pisses Alex off, like his sister thinks he doesn’t know or care. Alex _cares_. He cares a _lot_.

“It doesn’t bother him, and he’s older than me anyway — and hey, you should be nice to me. I’m your little brother, not him!”

“Yeah, but I know you’re a massive asshole and he needs my help more than you do. Someone has to teach him how to break through your crusty shell and reach the gooey caramel inside,” she says with a wink, and flounces off to slide her arm through Brendan’s.

Alex feels his stomach sinking. Nothing good can come of his sister conspiring against him with a potential love interest, and the closest thing he’s got to a best friend this side of Canada.

 

* * *

 

Their first game of the season is a home opening against the Leafs, which they drop 2-1 and it fucking _sucks_ , but their second game against the Panthers sees them dominating 4-1 and Alex scores his first NHL goal. It’s also Brendan’s NHL debut, and the locker room is absolutely buzzing afterwards. They’re due to fly to Washington the morning after next, and the guys are talking about celebrating the win and their rookies’ big starts on the game stage.

Alex is all for it, being shaken and punched and pushed around the room, laughing and absorbing the insane feelings rushing through him. Brendan’s exactly the same; he hasn’t stopped smiling since he stepped on the ice. Once the media leaves the room and they start getting changed, Alex goes to ask if he’s coming out and sees Brendan texting furiously.

“Your mom?” Alex asks, and Brendan looks up and — well, he looks a little guilty.

“Oh, uh. Not now, no. It’s uhm... your sister,” he says. PK and Pricey appear in front of them, evil grins on their faces.

“Look at that, Gally number one is texting Gally number two’s sister! I wouldn’t take that sitting down, buddy. He needs to pass some kind of test to make the moves!” PK sniggers, elbowing Alex, who most definitely doesn’t feel happy and weightless any more. It’s like someone’s tied elephants to his arms or something, and he can’t — he can’t move, or _breathe_.

“What? _No_ , it’s not like that! I don’t like her like that, I mean — we’re just _friends_ ,” Brendan exclaims, distressed. He looks wildly at Alex, who feels a little less... well, he can breathe now, so that’s a start.

“She just said congratulations for the debut and uh, to make sure Alex doesn’t get lost in his head. She said to take him out drinking. That’s all, I swear!” Brendan’s not even directing his conversation toward the others now, it’s all at Alex.

Alex nods and forces himself to smile, slugging Brendan in the arm.

“It’d better stay like that!” he fake-threatens, and Brendan nods earnestly and finishes dressing.

 

*

 

They go out drinking with a few of the guys, and it’s not a huge affair or anything. Pruster and PK keep pouring shots down his throat, and Gorges is retelling stories from his rookie year, looking wistfully at Brendan and Alex. Brendan’s been nursing his beer most of the evening, still on his phone but looking a lot less happy.

Alex excuses himself and heads to the restroom. He feels his phone buzz in his pocket and frowns, pulling it out to squint at the Cyrillic on his screen.

**Anna:**  
 _Brendan thinks he offended u by txting me. Make sure u tell him ur not offended, dickhead.  
Luv u  & congrats on the goal! xo_

Alex sighs and stares at the mirror. He doesn’t know how much more of this he can take, if his sister is determined to meddle in his life. _Probably for the best_ , an evil voice says somewhere in his head, and he shakes it off.

He’s not back for long when Gorges slaps a hand down on Brendan’s shoulder and tells him they’re leaving.

“Wait,” Alex says as Brendan goes to slip off the stool, his hand flying out to wrap around Brendan’s wrist.

“Yeah?” he asks, blinking at Alex with big blue eyes. Alex swallows, hard.

“I, uh. I don’t care that you’re texting my sister. It’s good that she’s... I mean — it’s good she’s making friends. I’m happy.”

Brendan still looks unsure, so Alex squeezes and he winces, but _finally_ smiles. Alex feels a weight he didn’t even know was there lift from his chest.

“Okay. I’ll see you at the rink tomorrow,” Brendan says and slips his hand from Alex’s, following Gorges out. PK laughs next to him.

“Lemme guess, now your bro’s gone you’re heading out too?” he asks, and Alex doesn’t even bother fronting, just downs his beer and nods.

 

* * *

 

Sometimes Alex feels like he’s the only one who thinks Brendan isn’t made of glass. People aren’t gentle with him or anything, but... they’re precious with him. The locker room is fast becoming a place where people give him shit for smiling all the time, but he’s so filled with wonder and awe and sheer _happiness_ that it just spills out and infects everyone.

Alex isn’t a grumpy individual, but he understands hard work and appreciates a smile and a laugh for what it is. Brendan is so wide-eyed and he exudes innocence, and Alex’s noticed a protective urge creeping up on him, creeping up on everyone, especially during games and when they’re out doing promotional shit. He tries to make up for it by roughing Brendan up during practise, being more gruff and unyielding with him, reminding him that not everyone will treat him with kid gloves. Brendan just takes it in his stride, like everything else.

Anna thinks he’s a grumpy bastard and tells everyone she can, as often as she can. Footage of him smacking Brendan around a little during a warm up before a game, pushing him against the glass, makes the rounds on the internet and suddenly Brendan’s invited to dinner at their house. Alex views this with the highest suspicion as he’s getting changed, Gorges whining about eating alone yet again while his girlfriend is away. It’s not even like Brendan is over _that_ much.

Brendan just rambles about whether his mom is going to make kalduny, Belarus’ answer to the Russian pelmeni. Alex knows for a fact that if Brendan wants it, Anna has probably already demanded their mom make it.

Anna comes to pick them up and ignores Alex entirely for kissing Brendan’s cheeks, laughing as he blushes and thanks her for inviting him for dinner.

“No problem! I have to show you the Galchenyuks aren’t all bullies and rude, eh?” she says, elbowing Alex. Alex trails after them, pouting. Her dog is in the car waiting, and he busies himself talking at her in Russian about how horrible her owner is, while Anna insists on Brendan sitting in the front and asking him all about practise.

“So the boys aren’t being mean to you or anything? They’re all being nice?” she asks as they turn a corner. Alex’s head snaps up and he narrows his eyes.

Brendan looks a little confused and shoots a look at Alex, before shrugging.

“Uhm, I don’t _think_ I’m being bullied, no? Everyone’s been really nice. They chirp me because I smile a lot, but I don’t care. I’ve got a lot to be happy about,” Brendan says and Anna nods wisely, before glaring at Alex in her rearview and focussing on the road.

Brendan grabs at Alex and asks if he knows what the fuck is going on, and Alex shakes his head. He learned a long time ago that he can’t predict his sister’s behaviour, and whatever plan she’s got in store for them, they’ve got little to no chance of fighting against it.

Sure enough, Mama makes kalduny and a bunch of other traditional food she usually doesn’t bother with, and between her and Anna they basically handfeed Brendan all night, cooing at him and making sure his every need to catered to. Alex watches with morbid fascination, as Brendan stays flustered under the attention and he makes no moves to save him.

He tries to do dishes, or at least _help_ , and Alex laughs as his mother muscles him out with a whack on his thigh with a wooden spoon, scolding him.

“You’re a guest, my ungrateful son will help!” she chirps and Alex stops laughing so suddenly he gives himself hiccoughs. Alex trudges into the kitchen and sulks at his mother, while Anna and Brendan sit in the living room. It falls quiet quickly, and Alex grows curious.

“What’re they talking about?” he asks, and his mother rolls her eyes.

“Don’t _worry_ , Brendan doesn’t like your sister like that. I’ve already asked,” she says, and Alex grips the plate he’s drying so hard his fingers crack.

“You _what_?!” he exclaims, and his mother raises her eyebrow.

“He was texting your sister a lot, and she was always talking about him! I just wondered—”

“Mama, you’re so embarrassing!” Alex huffs out, rubbing the plate furiously and stacking it.

“Oh, baby, I’m just saying you don’t need to be jealous...”

“Jealous!? Why would I be _jealous_?!”

His mother reaches for his arm, her eyes serious. “Why’re you so upset? What’s bothering you?”

“ _Nothing_ , Mama. Just, nothing. Finish drying so I can take Brendan home before Anna starts talking about embarrassing stuff I did as a baby,” he grumbles. His mother doesn’t look convinced but she pulls back and finishes, and Alex wanders towards the living room and hears the end of their conversation.

“—has issues expressing himself, and it comes out in like... stupid stuff, y’know? Overcomp... what’s the word, trying too hard?” Anna’s saying, and Brendan hums for a bit.

“Uhm... overcompensation?” he finally offers up, and she claps her hands.

“Yes, _exactly_. So don’t worry about him, okay? It doesn’t mean he doesn’t like you or anything. It means he likes you a lot, if he’s making the effort to punch you... or whatever.”

“This seems kind of stupid,” Alex hears Brendan say, and wholeheartedly concurs. He’s about to go storming in there and start yelling when he hears Anna chuckle.

“Yeah, it is. But it’s how Alex works. He’s a special kid, and he appreciates you a lot.”

Alex’s heart leaps up to his throat and he leans against the doorframe.

“...really?” Brendan asks, and his voice is so quiet, yet so fucking _hopeful_ that it kills Alex in one blow. He can’t stand it any longer and starts making noise, calling back at his mother to ask about dinner tomorrow.

“Well look at you two, conspiring against me,” Alex forces himself to say as he strides in. He knows he’s frowning and can’t help it. Anna’s basically in Brendan’s lap, she’s even got her _arm_ around him.

“C’mon Brendan, I’ll take you home,” he says, sticking his hands in his pockets. Anna glares.

“I thought he could stay here tonight—” she starts, and _fuck that_ , Alex thinks.

“Gorges was bitching at me today about how we take up all his time, so no. He’s gotta go. You have no idea what this dude is like,” Alex forces his voice to stay level. He doesn’t know if he could handle seeing Brendan in the morning, any more than he has to in the locker room and on the road. The guy is tiny, barely scraping 5’9” but he’s got an amazing body and it’s — _fuck_. He’s a fucking tease, and Alex needs some sort of escape from the daily barrage.

“Yeah, he’s totally lost without me,” Brendan says with a grin, standing and offering his hand to Anna, who takes it and kisses his cheeks.

“Don’t you have something to say?” she asks, and Brendan sighs loudly.

“What?” Alex asks, and Brendan shakes his head.

“God, so embarrassing... do I _have_ to?”

“If you want to be friends, yes. Go on!” she hedges, and Brendan pouts.

“ _Do svidaniya_.”

Alex feels — well. Anna’s laughing at Brendan’s mangling of the pronunciation, but hearing the Russian words on his lips... he’s half-hard and so fucking thankful he changed into sweatpants as soon as he got to the house. Brendan just shakes his head and moves around Alex to say goodbye to his mother, and Anna gets all up in his space.

“I remember your last girlfriend, how you taught her Russian and you’d get so _flustered_ hearing her mangle our language. I figured I’d help out this time,” she says with a mean laugh, and leaves Alex standing there with an awkward boner and the almost irrepressible rage to kill her.

 

“I really like your family. They’re amazing, and your mom is an amazing cook,” Brendan says as they get near to Gorges’. Alex has been shifting uncomfortably the whole time, speeding in order to get Brendan dropped off so he can go home and jerk off.

“They like you too. Mama wants to meet your parents next time they’re in Montreal,” he says and Brendan’s smile almost lights up the entire fucking car.

“I think they’re coming over for a few games soon, once Dad gets time off from work. I’m so excited. I miss them a lot,” Brendan says, and Alex makes a face. He knows he’s lucky having his mom and sister over, and how lonely it must get for Brendan sometimes.

“I’m glad, y’know. That I’ve got someone like you around,” Brendan says as they pull up, and Alex puts on the parking brake.

“Yeah?” he asks, unable to stop himself. Brendan leans back against the chair and smiles, softer this time, more intimate.

“Yeah. Your sister is a good friend. She loves you a lot, and I’m... it’s nice having her around,” Brendan says, and Alex wipes his palms against his pants.

“She likes you too— as a friend, of course.”

Brendan giggles and reaches for the door, looking over his shoulder as he goes.

“ _Do svidaniya, Sasha_.”

 

Alex doesn’t even make it home. He has to pull over and crawl into the backseat, working furiously to get his hand in his pants. He hopes the industrial-grade tint he got on Anna’s car stands up against anyone curious as to why an SUV is in a car park at 10pm on a weeknight.

 

* * *

 

Brendan starts learning Russian thanks to his evil sister, and apparently has an ear for languages given how fast he seems to be progressing.

The Habs start their roadtrip in March, going to Boston first, and Alex discovers Brendan at breakfast speaking slow, clunky Russian phrases into his phone. Alyosha and Andrusha can’t stop laughing, especially at Alex’s expense. Alex doesn’t feel overly comfortable using the diminutive with them, but they’re Russian so they enforce it. Andrusha Markov is an alternate captain, and Aloysha Emelin isn’t the kind of guy you would even _try_ saying no to.

“Does he know he just asked for a fish market?” Aloysha asks later, as they’re filing off the bus and onto the plane, Brendan squinting at a dictionary.

“Probably. Anna made him get Rosetta Stone,” Alex shrugs, shifting and wondering if he can convince Brendan to sit with one of them. Brendan shoots him a hopeful look over his shoulder, and Alex sighs wearily and drops into the window seat.

The guys sit in front of them, leaning over the top of their seats. Brendan’s arguing with Anna over the pronunciation of something, and Alex is searching slightly desperately for his headphones.

“So, Brendan is best friends with your sister now, eh?” Andrusha asks. Alex makes a face.

“Whatever, she needs more friends here so she’ll stop harassing me.”

“Aren’t you jealous, Sasha? Hearing your sister teaching your _friend_ all these beautiful Russian words?” Aloysha leers, and Alex grits his teeth.

Brendan’s talking about the weather, but he keeps saying the sun is blue. It gets on his last fucking nerve. He’s been horny ever since they got to the goddamned rink for the morning work out and breakfast.

“ _Solntse zheltoye_ , Brendan!” he finally exclaims, and Brendan blinks.

“ _Chto_?” Brendan asks, and of course he can get the pronunciation for _that_ totally correct.

“ _Solnste zheltoye_ ,” he repeats slowly, pointing out the window at the sun, and then tugging on his own hair. “ _Nebo goluboye, a ne na solntse_.”

Aloysha starts laughing and sits back down, and Andrusha just shakes his head.

“Babies,” he says in English and joins his seatmate.

“I was saying the sun is blue? I thought _solnste_ meant sky,” he says, looking dejected. Anna yells something at him down the phone and he frowns.

“I have to go, we’re taking off. I’ll call you later,” he says, before bidding her goodbye in Russian and hanging up.

“No, _sol_ — it sounds like the Latin for ‘sun’, yeah?”

Brendan starts mumbling to himself and highlighting stuff in his textbook, and Alex resigns himself to ever knowing what _not_ being uncomfortably turned on in public feels like ever again.

 

*

 

The team arrives in Boston and Brendan ditches the textbooks, and after they finish the practise skate he announces he’s meeting up with some friends.

“What friends do you have in Boston?” Alex says, surprised. Brendan rolls his eyes.

“I know Tyler Seguin,” he says and Alex frowns. Brendan leaves before he has a chance to say anything, so Alex goes to find PK and Lars. They watch a movie in Lars’ room before deciding to go out for a walk, and Alex keeps checking his phone.

“You miss him already, Chucky?” PK coos at him, and Alex resists the urge to lob the salt shaker at his smug face as they find a restaurant to grab a quick lunch in.

“ _No_ ,” he says hotly, and Lars starts laughing.

 

They get back from lunch and Pruster’s with Colby and Brendan in the video room. Coach wants to go over plays before the game, and Alex sits down in the spare seat to Brendan’s left. He looks okay, not damaged or anything. Maybe he is just friends with Seguin...

“How was Seguin?” he asks, when the conversation lulls with them. Brendan shrugs.

“It was okay. He talked about his tattoos and his dog most of the time. Dude is kind of boring, and he’s living _here_. I thought my life was uneventful,” Brendan says and Alex can’t help the laugh that slips out. Brendan looks pleased and the others look amused.

 

*

 

Boston falls to them 4-3, which is fucking _amazing_ , although neither Alex nor Brendan get goals. They’re not due to fly until the next afternoon to New York for the Islanders game, so they go out drinking to celebrate. Brendan and Alex are the only ones on the team under 21, but they manage to slide their way into a bar and hide in a booth towards the back while the others get them drinks — that is, until Brendan gets a text from Seguin.

“Who’s that?” Alex asks, as PK drops a tray of beers on the table and slides in next to Alex.

“Seguin, again. He’s going out with some of his friends, they want me to meet up with them,” Brendan says, taking a sip and slipping his phone back in his pocket.

“Well, tell him you’re busy celebrating with your winning team,” Alex grumbles and Brendan rolls his eyes.

“I did, stop already.”

Seguin, however, is nothing if not persistent and keeps texting Brendan over the next hour until he decides he’s going to meet them.

“They’re at a bar nearby, so I won’t be long. I’ve got my key, so don’t wait up,” Brendan says, bidding goodbye to everyone and leaving.

Alex’s fist tightens around the bottle of his beer, and he downs it. He’s lucky, he should be _happy_ Brendan’s got friends in other cities. He’s got loads of his boys from Sarnia floating around the league, breaking in as rookies on their teams, and could probably find a few in Boston if he tried hard enough. He just doesn’t really feel like trying.

Brendan gets in late and staggers around, giggling and snorting at himself as he gets his shoes off and falls into bed. He passes out shortly after and starts snoring, while Alex stares up at the roof and listens to his breathing. He feels pissed off, majorly so. How dare Seguin let him get drunk when he’s got to fly tomorrow? He’ll have a hangover and Alex will have to fucking take care of him, and it’s not — it’s not what he _needs_ right now.

 

He wakes up first and showers, kicking at Brendan as he walks past. Brendan moans and lifts his head, his brown hair covering most of his eyes.

“I feel like shit,” he rasps and Alex snorts and pulls his duvet off.

“Shower, we have breakfast.”

 

Anna calls while Brendan’s in the shower, and Alex flops back on his bed and answers.

“What do you want?”

“Horrible way to greet your sister, douchebag,” Anna says lazily, and Alex smiles at the ceiling.

“I’m surprised you’re not busy with Brendan right now. Did you remember I exist?” he chirps, and Anna laughs, throaty and full.

“Don’t be jealous. It’s a bad look,” she says and Alex frowns.

“But you are, of course. I heard that you were ready to smackdown with Seguin last night, for stealing your boy away and getting him drunk. Did you see the Twitter pictures?” she says innocently, and Alex is already on his iPad and opening up Seguin’s page. He grits his teeth as he sees a picture of Seguin and Brendan posing in some stupid bar somewhere, smiling widely and giving the thumbs up. He can see a red mark peeking from Brendan’s collar, and feels sickened from the idea that someone — someone who wasn’t _him_ — touched Brendan like that.

“You there?” Anna asks softly, and Alex closes the screen and throws it behind him.

“I don’t know what to do,” he whispers and Anna sighs.

“Tell him how you feel, idiot.”

“He wouldn’t — it wouldn’t...” Alex fumbles.

“Let’s just say... I didn’t suggest learning Russian, brother dear. He _asked_ me to teach him. Get it, now?” she asks, and Alex looks up as the bathroom door opens and Brendan leans against the door frame. His hair is wet and the water droplets are running down his skin, a thick white towel the only thing hiding his modesty. There’s no marks on his body, no hickies and only some bruising on his ribs from games, and Alex loses his breath at the sight.

“He asked you?” Alex says, locking eyes with Brendan.

“Yes, he did. He started by asking how to say ‘I like you more than a friend’,” Anna says.

Alex disconnects and stands up, walking over to Brendan.

“What’s going on?” Brendan asks, a hint of a smile on his face as Alex stops in front of him and pulls him in, his fingers slipping against Brendan’s wet skin.

“ _Ya lyublyu tebya bol'she, chem drug_ ,” he says, and Brendan frowns.

“What? My — I don’t know,” he says and Alex sighs and leans in, kissing him as chastely as he can manage. Brendan tastes like apples, his stupid bodywash, and Alex pulls back. Brendan’s eyes are wide.

“I said, I like you more than a friend,” Alex says and Brendan shakes his head, his smile blossoming on his face.

“Anna told you, didn’t she?” he asks, and Alex shrugs and pulls Brendan back into the room until his knees hit the bed and he sits down, tugging Brendan on top of him.

He straddles his lap, skin still warm and wet from the shower, and he kisses Alex this time. It’s all too easy to just tilt his head, the height difference switched in his position, and he wraps his arms around Brendan and brings him close.

The front of his shirt is getting wet, dimpled from the droplets from Brendan’s chest, but he can’t find it in himself to care.

 

* * *

 

Not much changes between the months of March and May between them, besides the ridiculously amazing sex (not total sex; blowjobs and handies are as far as either of them seem willing to go at that point) they’re having. Alex hasn’t told anyone, but he’s kind of addicted to waking up with Brendan asleep beside him the rare days they can swing it, either nuzzled up to him or curled in a ball close enough that Alex can feel his body heat. The kid is like a furnace, and Alex doesn’t even bother wearing much more past boxers to bed these days.

Anna is ridiculously smug and he’s pretty sure his mother knows what’s going on, if the way she greets Brendan with more kissing and hugging and speaking slowly at him in Russian — like he’s going to have picked up that much in two months — and asking what he wants to eat.

The last game of the season is away to the Leafs, the opposite of how they’d opened the season, but they win 2-1 and enter the playoffs. Alex is deliriously excited — even though he knows it’s going to be hard work, and everyone’s tired and having trouble keeping on weight due to the stress and exhaustion wracking their bodies.

He’s eating breakfast when Brendan and Gorges come over on the second of May, their playoff schedules supposedly being emailed out by the club at some point that morning, and Anna drags Brendan off, whispering and looking conspiratorial at Alex.

“What’s going on, Mama?” he asks, leaning over his cereal bowl. His mother just rolls her eyes and kisses his cheek, saying hello to Gorges and offering him a plate. He thanks her, roundly complaining about his girlfriend abandoning him to starve.

Brendan and Anna emerge several minutes later, Brendan looking embarrassed and Anna pleased. His mother already has a plate ready, and he thanks her in Russian and smiles as she kisses his cheek.

“Trying to make my family like you more than me,” Alex grumbles and Brendan has an attack of the giggles, making Alex and Gorges snort into their food. Alex links his foot around Brendan’s ankle though, and wonders if they have time for mutual handies before they have to drive to the rink — except Gorges is there, so probably not.

 

They leave once Gorges and Brendan finish eating, and Alex heads home alone when Brendan tells him he needs to pick up his parents from the airport.

“Brendan’s parents are here for the playoffs or something,” Alex says by way of explanation when he returns without him, and his mother and sister look confused.

“Why aren’t you with him, meeting them?” Anna asks, and Alex raises an eyebrow.

“Why would I?” he asks, and Anna scoffs.

“What’s the date today, asshole?”

“May second.”

“Anything special happening this week?”

Alex feels like whatever he says is going to be the wrong answer, so he tries to think about it.

“We play the Penguins?”

Anna hits him over the head with her purse, and Alex yells. “You idiot! Try again!”

“Ah, _Anna_! I really don’t know!”

Anna looks like she could kill him.

“Oh my god Alex, you really are an asshole! It’s Brendan’s birthday on the sixth! He turns 21!”

Alex stops and his jaw drops. “Oh, shit.”

“Oh shit, exactly! You need to go buy him something nice!”

Alex gulps. He literally has no idea what to get Brendan. “I don’t—”

“Don’t even _say_ to me that you don’t know what to get him. You guys have been getting down for months now, and were totally best friends before that!”

Alex shakes his head.

“Boys don’t — we don’t talk about stuff like that! What do I do?” he asks, and Anna puts her hands on her hips.

“Good thing I am awesome, and asked him what he wants. Unluckily for you, he said he’s got everything he wants.”

Alex glares. “How does this help me? You’re the opposite of awesome.”

“Let me finish, douchebag. You should do something sweet, like... make a voucher book or something.”

“A voucher book?”

Anna disappears, and reappears with a terrifying box stacked with stationary. “Yes! Like, one meal... or a massage... or personal servant for a day — you know, stuff like that.”

“Fuck personal servant, he’d abuse it in all the wrong ways,” Alex mumbles, but the idea is growing on him.

 

He spends the afternoon making coupons with Anna, fighting her whenever she comes near him with glitter glue, and losing miserably because she’s got the strength of a demon when she wants it.

“Has he told his parents?” she asks when they’re sitting out on the balcony, wine open between them.

“I don’t think so. We haven’t really told anyone — besides you, and Gorges. I haven’t told Mama.”

Anna laughs. “Mama’s known since the second she laid eyes on you together. She was the one who told me to ‘befriend that sweet boy before Alex does something horrible to him’,” Anna sniggers and Alex feels offended for a few beats, before shrugging and sinking down into his chair.

Her involvement in their developing relationship has definitely been for the better, even if he hates to admit it.

“Do you think you’re going to tell more people?” she asks, and he shrugs helplessly. He likes Brendan, likes him a _lot_ , but the idea of — the idea of having to come out, having to tell the club and the _world_ about them; it would take a level of commitment Alex isn’t sure he knows how to comprehend right now.

“I don’t know,” he says truthfully, and looks back at the kitchen table — the mess surrounding it, and the stack of coupons.

 

He texts Brendan later that night, and asks if he wants to go out for a birthday dinner on the fifth — since he’ll probably be doing stuff with his parents the following night. Brendan texts back a bunch of smiley Emojis, with “Anna reminded you, didn’t she?”

Alex rolls his eyes, but texts back “Da,” and focusses on getting ready for their game against the Penguins.

 

*

 

They win 1-0 but it’s a heart stopping last few minutes, with Crosby and Malkin bombing forward at Pricey. They cling onto the lead and it’s an insane feeling, one he’ll never be able to put a name to.

Malkin finds him afterwards, shaking his hand.

“You going to Russia over the summer?” he asks, and Alex nods.

“Y-yeah, probably. Uh,” he says, and Malkin grins.

“I’ll be in Magnitogorsk training for most of it, but I might be in Moscow for a few days. We should meet up, or you should come train with me and Sergei Gonchar, from Ottawa. We’ll get some meat on those bones,” Malkin teases, giving him his Russian number and bidding him goodbye.

“What?” Pricey and PK ask as Alex heads back into the locker rooms, feeling shell shocked.

“Uhm, Evgeni Malkin just asked me to go train with him over the summer,” Alex says and Pruster starts laughing from next to him.

“You gonna go back to Russia?” he asks, and Alex nods.

“Yeah, my dad’s gonna fly out here whenever he can for the playoffs, but we’ll all go back whenever our season finishes.”

He catches Brendan’s eye, but instead of the ridiculous smile he’s expecting, Brendan looks pensive, and strains to offer something that looks more like a grimace than anything.

Alex doesn’t get a chance to see Brendan before he disappears, and is kept busy all the next day when his father arrives, completely blindsiding him. He contemplates rescheduling with Brendan, but Anna elbows him sharply and frowns.

“You need to go with Brendan. You’ll see Papa all day every day, and all over the summer. Brendan probably didn’t realise you weren’t staying here.”

“Why would I stay here?” he asks, confused, and Anna smacks him.

“Idiot! Maybe because you’re an American citizen, travel on the passport and play for Team USA? Why _would_ he think you’d be going back to Russia?”

Alex glares at her, but tells his parents he’s going for dinner with Brendan and disappears to change.

 

He let Anna pick the place, some cosy little Italian restaurant and Alex gets chatting with the server, who is just delighted someone can actually speak Italian in French Canada. It means they get awesome service all night, and he keeps Brendan’s smile on his face by cracking jokes and talking excitedly about their playoffs run.

It isn’t until they’re finished with dessert and Alex asks him if he wants to take a walk that the mood dips a little. They wander through the park nearby — Alex makes a mental note to thank Anna — and buy hot chocolate from the vendor selling it at the edge. They find a bench to sit at, and Alex reaches into his pocket and pulls out the package, also wrapped by Anna.

He’s fast discovering he kind of fails at being an adult, and if his sister wasn’t around he’d be much worse off.

“What’s this?” Brendan asks, and Alex flushes.

“I, uh. Happy birthday. I wasn’t really sure what to get you, so I just...yeah,” he trails off, rubbing the back of his neck. Brendan hands him his drink, so he can carefully open the wrapper.

“That’s a lot of glitter,” he laughs, and Alex rolls his eyes.

“Fucking Anna,” is all he offers up, and Brendan shakes his head, tracing a finger along the writing on the front.

“Go on,” Alex urges and Brendan flips it open, red yarn holding the book together in the corner.

“One free breakfast from anyone named Galchenyuk, even though you don’t deserve it. Only redeemable on birthdays, Christmas and Easter. Public holiday surcharge—” Brendan dissolves into giggles, unable to finish, and Alex nudges him to keep flipping.

They continue in the same vein; free massage after game days but only if he scores, a get-out-of-jail-free card for anything less than murder... and then they get a little saucy. He’d made Anna leave when he started doing these ones, and it’s obvious in the lack of artistic flair (he’d mostly just drawn the CH of their logo around the corners).

“One free blowjob, even if I’m mad at you?” Brendan reads, and Alex shrugs.

“You do like your blowjobs,” he says.

He’s holding his breath when Brendan reaches the last page, lost in another attack of the giggles after reading the particularly inventive one about public sex and Alex taking the fall if they get busted, his laughter caught in his throat.

“Alex, what...”

Alex had added this last coupon in, after Anna told him that maybe Brendan hadn’t expected him to be heading back to Russia for the summer. He wondered if it was too much —

“I just, uh. I didn’t realise that maybe you didn’t know I go back to Russia for the summers? Even though I’m American, Dad’s business and my family and most of my friends are there, so. But uh...”

“One return trip to Russia, redeemable whenever you want to come see the second most awesome country in the world,” Brendan says softly, and Alex winces. He’s such an _idiot_.

“I mean, you don’t _have_ to, I just—”

Brendan cuts him off by leaning in and kissing him, his fingers tangling in Alex’s jacket.

“I love it,” he says, pulling back slightly and grinning at him, bright and clear.

Alex lets a breath whoosh out, one he didn’t even know he was holding, and Brendan laughs.

“I’m gonna use this, y’know. I’ll help pay for my ticket and I’ll give you guys money for letting me stay, but uh... I want to come, I want to see you this summer,” Brendan says, and Alex nods around the lump that’s developing in his throat.

 

Alex drives Brendan home, and Brendan insists he come inside and meet his parents. Alex hovers nervously by the doorway, and Brendan’s mom and dad appear and smile widely at him; his mom hugging him and his dad shaking his arm vigorously.

“Oh Alex, it’s _so_ nice to meet you! Brendan’s always talking about you,” Brendan’s mom says, winking, and Brendan flushes bright pink.

“Mo- _om_!” he exclaims and she laughs, so similar to Brendan’s giggle that it makes Alex smile.

“Okay?” Brendan asks as his parents head back into the lounge room, asking Alex a million questions about America and Russia and how he’s settling in at the Habs, and Alex reaches for Brendan’s hand and squeezes for a beat.

His phone buzzes in his pocket and he lets go, fishing in to find Anna’s texted him. He rings her instead, hanging back.

“So?” she demands and Alex rolls his eyes.

“He loved it. He wants to come see me in Russia over the summer.”

There’s a pause, and Alex can hear Anna sniffling. He’d told her he was going to put it in, and she’d cried then, and it seems like she’s going to cry again now.

“C’mon, don’t cry...” he begs and Anna coughs.

“I’m _not_ crying, jerk! I’m just... I’m glad he wants to,” she says and Alex sighs and leans against the doorframe, watching Brendan yell at his parents over what board game to play next.

“Chucky, are we playing Monopoly or Clue?” Brendan asks, and Alex bites down on his lip.

“Clue, of course.”

Brendan glares as his parents hi-five, grumbling over Monopoly being the more superior game, and Alex presses his phone back against his face.

“I gotta go, we’re playing Clue,” he says and Anna sighs loudly.

“Okay, baby brother. I’m just glad you’re happy, and worked your stupid feelings out,” she says and Alex rolls his eyes, but can’t help the smile.

“Yeah, so am I. Thanks Anna, we both owe you a lot.”

“Damn right!”

 

Alex walks in and sits down next to Brendan, who leans against him and grins up at him.

“Everything all good?” he asks, and Alex nods.

“Yeah, just Anna. She wanted to know how you liked your present,” he says and Brendan laughs.

“What’d you tell her?” he asks, and Alex shrugs and reaches for a game piece.

“Told her you loved it.”

Brendan licks his lips and darts a look at his parents, who are brent over the game instructions, and he leans in close to whisper in Alex’s ear.

“ _Ya khochu seksa segodnya._ ”

Alex chokes on his tongue and Brendan leans back, impossibly pleased.

“Your sister taught me that one!” he winks, before turning to yell at his father for trying to cheat with the shuffle. Alex sits there for a moment, trying to catch his breath and will his boner away.

 

Anna taught him.

Of course.

**Author's Note:**

>  _Do svidaniya_ = Goodbye  
>  _Sasha_ = diminutive term for Alex  
>  _Alyosha_ = diminutive term for Alexei Emelin  
>  _Andrusha_ = diminutive term for Andrei Markov  
>  _Solntse zheltoye_ = the sun is yellow  
>  _Chto?_ = What?  
>  _Nebo goluboye, a ne na solntse_ = the sky is blue, the sun isn't  
>  _Ya lyublyu tebya bol'she, chem drug_ = I like you more than a friend  
>  _Ya khochu seksa segodnya_ = I want sex tonight


End file.
